There’s been consternation. There’s been hand-wringing. There’s been the gnashing of teeth. If new president Johan de Nysschen hasn’t turned Cadillac on its ear, he’s certainly stirred the pot with the new CT/XT(X) naming scheme and the GM division’s impending move to the island of Manhattan. At this point, both are done deals. So rather than rehash that stuff, we sat down with him at the L.A. auto show to talk product. Specifically, what we can expect to see from the General’s prestige brand in the next decade . . .

OIL BURNING, TIRE-SMOKING ACTION FOR 2019

Audi has diesels. Mercedes-Benz has diesels. Even über-sportlich BMW sells compression-ignition automobiles in the United States. To expand globally, Cadillac obviously needs to burn oil, and not just at midnight. “Diesel is the fastest, most cost-effective way to reduce CO2 and emissions,” says de Nysschen. “I think it has to be part of our portfolio approach to meeting compliance. Cadillac also wants to be more global and less U.S.-centric, and for many markets, diesel is simply a prerequisite. We will introduce an all-new diesel engine developed specifically for Cadillac by around 2019.”

When we ask whether that includes U.S.-market oil-burners, he succinctly asserts that, “We have a global plan.” And yes, that global plan includes both four- and six-cylinder diesel engines.

TAKING THE FIGHT TO THE 911 AFTER 2020

Audi took the first shot at Porsche’s ubiquitous 911 with its Lamborghini Gallardo–based R8. Mercedes followed just this year with the AMG GT. Yet de Nysschen thinks the time isn’t quite right for Cadillac to leap into that fray: “If you do a high-performance car like the 911, R8, or AMG GT too soon, then you run the risk of being too far removed from where the epicenter of the brand is, so it struggles to have relevance for people. The Acura NSX was a great car, highly acclaimed. But it was so far removed from their other products at the time that I don’t think it did much for the brand. It was the right time for Audi to do the R8 (in 2007). In the long term, yes, I can imagine that there’s such a car, but it’s in the long-term. Beyond 2020. Not 20 years, much closer than that.”

If we’re spitballing—and we are—such a machine could share its bones with a mid-engined Corvette. Which seems like a much better choice than chasing the Mercedes SL with a Northstar-powered Vette featuring a folding hardtop. That, after all, didn’t work out so well for Cadillac.

THERE MAY BE A V SUV

BMW has the X5 M. Range Rover has the Range Rover Sport Supercharged. Mercedes-Benz sells AMG variants of utes in varying size classes. Stands to reason that a future Cadillac ute would wear the V badge, and de Nysschen suggests that this is likely to feature in future product plans: “I want to create a significantly expanded range of V models. It means that we need to attain critical mass. To set up V as an image-enhancing, adrenaline-pumping subbrand to Cadillac. I expect the V range to grow up to five or six models, and I expect, conceivably, that one of them could be a crossover, as well. Wouldn’t it be nice to go and hand out a spanking to a Cayenne Turbo? To be candid, don’t imagine a V of every car—a V Escalade, likely not. You always have to be credible to what V stands for.”

ATS-V SALES TARGETS ARE MODEST

Asserting, “This car is like the spice in your meal; it’s not the whole meal,” the division chief suggests that the new ATS-V is designed to sell in very modest volume. It needs to be done in very low numbers to remain special and relatively unobtainable. “We will definitely not build this car in high volume. Ideally, it would be build-to-order. The volume has to be where the volume is. We sell a thousand of these? Then it’s good. I don’t mind.”

Although de Nysschen recognizes the pricing-enhancement power of halo vehicles, over the next decade Cadillac will also see a move downmarket. “The use of the product strategy to keep, cultivate, and build the brand power has got to be executed in a very, very carefully crafted and deliberate fashion,” he says. “Cadillac will go upmarket, but we’ll also enter many market segments that are emerging now, especially for the Millennials—compact, premium cars. You have to be careful that you don’t pull down the center of gravity of the brand before you have secured it up [top, however].”

Which, we hope, means the world won’t see retreads of the unfortunate, Saab-based BLS sold in Europe, the sad-sack Catera, or the saddest-sack Cimarron.